Category: TV
Enrigue: Bending Time, One Book at a Time
[Contraportada, April 23, 2012]
Mexican writer Álvaro Enrigue returned to Contraportada to talk about the flexible use of time in his latest novels, Vidas perpendiculares and Decencia. Enrigue is currently working on a new novel thanks to a fellowship from the Cullman Center of the New York Public Library.
Guarco: Global Sounds, Radical Heart
[Contraportada, April 10, 2012]
Guarco’s Fiebre is simply one of the few new records I’ve listened to in repeat in the last year. You can say he didn’t do anything The Clash, Manu Chao or Caetano Veloso didn’t do before, and you’ll be right. But something in the break-up candombe-rock “Monster,” the trippy dub of “Qué Pasó?” or the tropicalia of “Se Terminó el Carnaval,” something that goes beyond his lyrics —simultaneously earnest and playful— will get you every time.
Los Rakas
[Contraportada, April 3, 2012]
Bay Area duo Los Rakas has been releasing tracks since members and cousins Raka Rich and Raka Dun were in their teens. In 2010 they were the darlings of alternative Latin music conference LAMC, and last August they released their “formal” debut, the vibrant EP Chancletas y Camisetas Bordada. In this interview for Contraportada, the Panama-raised cousins talked about their musical origins, their endless work flow, and the capacity to move from Plena-infused future bass to romantic R&B.
For more info on Los Rakas and related acts, check the amazing work of Natalia Linares at Conrazón.
Blood in the Eyes of Lina Meruane
[Contraportada, March 27, 2010]
Chilean writer and NYU professor Lina Meruane came to Contraportada to talk about her new novel, Sangre en el ojo, a semi-biographical (she won’t tell how much) tale on a Chilean writer named Lina Meruane who loses her sight while living in New York.
Henry Cole: Bringing It All Together Via Afrobeat
Contraportada Is Back
Contraportada, the arts and culture segment I conducted between 2007 and 2011 for NY1 Noticias is back on air. The show returned on January 6 with an interview to up-and-coming Colombian-roots rockers M.A.K.U. Soundsytem, and a few days later with an interview to Guatemalan star Gaby Moreno. This week, it was the turn of flamenco genre-bender Buika, who had been on Contraportada back in 2010.
[Click on the image to watch]
Moona Luna: Songs for a Bilingual Childhood
[Continue reading the article on the Daily News]
…and here’s an interview with Moona Luna’s leader, Sandra Velásquez, on Contraportada:
Pedrito Martínez Makes Noise the Old Fashioned Way
In recent years, Cuban percussionist Pedrito Martínez has become one of the most active Latino musicians in the city. Besides playing his drums for numerous other musicians, he has formed a band of his own Pedrito Martínez Group. With this outfit, he has created a devoted following the old fashioned way: playing energetic weekly gigs at Cuban restaurant/club Guantanamera in Manhattan.
In this interview, Pedrito an piano player Axel Toscas talk about their music, and having fans such as Eric Clapton and John Scofield. [WATCH]
Calle 13: Lifting the Veil
Calle 13 came to Contraportada a few days before the official release of their much-anticipated fourth album, Entren Los Que Quieran. On their second visit to the show, Residente and Visitante talked about the process of creating the album while insisting on their political commitment.
José Manuel Simián 